Related papers: On the configuration space topology in general rel…
Is the universe finite or infinite, and what shape does it have? These fundamental questions, of which relatively little is known, are typically studied within the context of the standard model of cosmology where the universe is assumed to…
We examine configurations of finite subsets of manifolds within the homotopy-theoretic context of $\infty$-categories by way of stratified spaces. Through these higher categorical means, we identify the homotopy types of such configuration…
We show that General Relativity can be formulated as a constrained topological theory for flat 2-connections associated to the Poincar\'e 2-group. Matter can be consistently coupled to gravity in this formulation. We also show that the edge…
Starting from the (apparently) elementary problem of deciding how many different topological spaces can be obtained by gluing together in pairs the faces of an octahedron, we will describe the central role played by hyperbolic geometry…
This paper grew out of an attempt to find a suitable finite sheeted covering of an aspherical 3-manifold so that the cover either has infinite or trivial first homology group. With this motivation we define a new class of groups. These…
We compute the integral homology and cohomology groups of configuration spaces of two distinct points on a given real projective space. The explicit answer is related to the (known multiplicative structure in the) integral cohomology---with…
The space-like hypersurface of the Universe at the present cosmological time is a three-dimensional manifold. A non-trivial global topology of this space-like hypersurface would imply that the apparently observable universe (the sphere of…
Understanding the geometry and topology of configuration or conformational spaces of molecules has relevant applications in chemistry and biology such as the proteins folding problem, drug design and the structure activity relationship…
The configuration space of general relativity is superspace - the space of all Riemannian 3-metrics modulo diffeomorphisms. However, it has been argued that the configuration space for gravity should be conformal superspace - the space of…
We survey and expand on the work of Segal, Milgram and the author on the topology of spaces of maps of positive genus curves into $n$-th complex projective space, $n\geq 1$ (in both the holomorphic and continuous categories). Both based and…
We compute the cohomology ring of a generalised type of configuration space of points in $\mathbb{R}^r$. This configuration space is indexed by a graph. In the case the graph is complete the result is known and it is due to Arnold and…
Coordination geometries describe how the neighbours of a central particle are arranged around it. Such geometries can be thought to lie in an abstract topological space; a model of this space could provide a mathematical basis for…
Consider the configuration spaces of manifolds. We give a precise formula for the integral cohomological dimension (the degree of top non-trivial integral cohomology group) of unordered configuration spaces of manifolds with non-trivial…
We investigate topology change in 3D. Using Morse theory and handle decomposition we find the set of elementary cobordisms for 3-manifolds. These are: (i) \O <-> S^2; (ii) \Sigma_g <-> \Sigma_{g+1}; (iii) \Sigma_{g_1} \sqcup \Sigma_{g_2}…
We present a mathematical framework for describing the topology of configuration spaces for particles on one-connected graphs. In particular, we compute the homology groups over integers for different classes of one-connected graphs. Our…
A set of algebraic equations for the topological properties of space-time is derived, and used to extend general relativity into the Planck domain. A unique basis set of three-dimensional prime manifolds is constructed which consists of…
We construct a real combinatorial model for the configuration spaces of points of compact smooth oriented manifolds without boundary. We use these models to show that the real homotopy type of configuration spaces of a simply connected such…
The first part of this paper is a short review of the construction [dg-ga/9710001] of invariants of rational homology 3-spheres and knots in terms of configuration space integrals. The second part describes the relationship between the…
The topological complexity TC(X) is a homotopy invariant which reflects the complexity of the problem of constructing a motion planning algorithm in the space X, viewed as configuration space of a mechanical system. In this paper we…
This paper continues the investigation of the configuration space of two distinct points on a graph. We analyze the process of adding an additional edge to the graph and the resulting changes in the topology of the configuration space. We…